Super Rugby Pacific's COVID-19 scare has brought mixed blessings for the Blues, as they try to manage a forced bye in next week's opening round.
Their historic clash with newcomers Moana Pasifika was originally scheduled for what should have been a packed Mt Smart Stadium on Friday, but was subsequently moved to a South Island bubble and now postponed, after several of the expansion side tested positive for the virus this week.
While that spells disaster for the Pacific Island franchise, it also leaves Blues coach Leon MacDonald wondering when his Super Rugby Trans-Tasman champions will take the park for their opening game.
"We still don't know whether this game is postponed days, weeks or months," he admits. "We could be playing midway through next week, we don't know.
"We just have to be flexible, we written up plans for whether it's postponed a matter of days or whether we go right through to the Hurricanes.
"The Hurricanes are the likely scenario, where we miss week one, but we have to do the best we can this week to make sure the guys keep moving forward.
"In an ideal world, we'd be playing a game of rugby, along with everyone else, because we'll be a week behind everyone else if we don't, so we're pretty keen to get out there."
The Blues dodged their own COVID scare this week, when a player was identified as a close contact, but subsequently returned a negative test to avert any further disruption.
But Moana Pasifika's positives have not only delayed next week's fixture, they forced dramatic changes to the final round of pre-season games, with the Blues, Highlanders and Chiefs contesting a 'game of three halves' behind closed doors instead.
"Every day is ever changing and we understand this is the way it's going to be for the next six months," says MacDonald.
"At some point, other teams will have the same impact as Moana has had, with 6-7-8 players out of contention, and we could be locked down and trying to find a way back on the grass again."
If there is a silver lining to the chaos, another week would give the Blues time to get some of their walking wounded back into contention, including All Blacks first-five Beauden Barrett, who would have missed the Moana Pasifika clash with the lingering affects of concussion.
He will join the squad this week and could be cleared to face his old Wellington-based outfit in week two.
MacDonald also lost several players to injury during last week's mudbath in the capital, which left him without a specialist openside flanker for the threeway encounter. That crisis should ease with a few extra days' recovery.
Another benefit will be added time to help acclimate former NZ Warriors league star Roger Tuivasa-Sheck to his new role in the Blues midfield.
After struggling in treacherous conditions last week, he apparently looked more at home with the advantage of six more days in the saddle.
"This game was probably more like what we expect Super Rugby to be like," says MacDonald. "It was faster and the breakdown was happening pretty quick.
"I thought his adjustments from last week, particularly around the breakdown - things like ball placement on the ground and arrival at the breakdown - were far better, so another step forward for him.
"He got his hands on the ball a few times. He never got the ball with any space unfortunately, but generally he was in good positions and communicating well, so he'll feel a lot better after this week's hitout, definitely."
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